The Doorway Chime
by Dia.Dahling
Summary: Strange how two people could be surrounded by hundreds yet still be all by themselves. RononTeyla Next in SAWS 09!


Disclaimer: I don't own _Stargate: Atlantis_. I don't claim to. I'm not making money, I'm only trying to have fun. Please don't sue?

Summary: Strange how two people could be surrounded by hundreds yet still be all by themselves. RononTeyla Next in SAWS 09!

Rating: K+

Warnings: Love is in the air. . .

Pairing: Ronon/Teyla

Spoilers: None

Part: 1/1

Title: _The Doorway Chime_

Author:

**Author's Note**: This is the next story for SAWS, or Spanky a Week Summer, in which there is a new Ronon/Teyla story posted every week throughout the summer. For more information and links to other stories in SAWS, check out fyd818's profile. This story is a sweet little piece of fluff that I hope you all enjoy. Thanks for reading – and reviews are loved! ;) -

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* * *

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**The Doorway Chime**

* * *

The doorway chimed, unknowingly sending thrills to Ronon's stomach. The noise was followed by light footsteps, ones that seemed to sing to him. Everything about her sung to him. He smelled the scent of storage: a mixture of clothing and plastic stored for a long time in a warm room. Teyla had her suitcase with her.

Ronon zipped the last pocket of his duffel, sizably less than half the size of every other suitcase going. He was the only one that didn't notice this fact.

The footsteps continued lightly toward him, making it no longer possible to not look at her. She was captivating for him; and, as cliché as it sounded, she was his drug. He needed her to live, to breathe, to function.

"You ready?" he asked. It seemed to be a rather pointless question, judging by the suitcase and her message saying she'd pick him up.

Teyla looked down at her suitcase, obviously thinking the same things as him. "I believe so. However, I do have a certain feeling that-"

"You're forgetting something important?" he finished, smiling crookedly.

Relief filled her eyes. "You feel it, too?"

"No." He chuckled. "You just always say that when we're going somewhere."

"Oh." She said it as if guilty or ashamed.

He lightly touched her arm, trying to cheer her up. "You'll be fine. Let's head out." In one fell swoop, he swung his duffel over his shoulder and grabbed the handle of her suitcase. Side-by-side, they walked toward the Jumper Bay.

_**

* * *

**_

Three days earlier.

"Let me guess. Sheppard has incredible plans for the best outing ever." Ronon said via radio.

Although she was in the gym working out, his very words forced Teyla to chuckle. Every time they talked, he astounded her with his – _personality_. Until a few weeks ago, she wasn't quite sure if he even had one. But now, now that they were always together, she realized how fabulously wrong those thoughts had been. "Exactly."

"What are they this time?" His voice was a hodgepodge of anger, annoyance, curiosity, and excitement, most of which she wouldn't have even noticed before.

She completed one and a half sit-ups before answering. "We have three diplomacy meetings. . ."

She knew he was at the shooting range, the place he always went when they weren't together. Between his words, she could hear the zing of his blaster. "Yeah, I remember that part. He was telling me that he had to think of something business-y fast or we couldn't go."

"Yes," she said, relaxing into the ground. "And, if I am not mistaken, we will spend an evening with Rodney's family." Her abs barely felt the motion as she curled again. "I am rather grateful that we no longer have to hide our identities around Jeannie."

Another shot fired in the distance, this one obviously from a P-90. "Yeah, I guess me too. But what are you hiding?" His blaster responded to the bullet-fire. "You're not all that great at beating around the bush."

"John decided to take us to the zoo." She said that abnormally quickly, without thinking. It stunned her to realize the power Ronon had over her hit her all at once.

"_What_?!" His answer came swiftly, with none of the humor or joy that she was beginning to love. The blaster stopped, leaving the P-90 alone in firing.

Teyla returned to the ground, took a deep breath, then sat up with her legs crossed. "I understand the debate you had when he told you of it, but you must be willing to at least try it. If nothing else, then for the experience." Her voice was slow and calm, as if to soothe the angry beast.

There was a moment of complete silence. "Then I'll pick you up?" Those five words had the emotions of hundreds, but she understood his restraint until the right time to speak.

Stepping away from that, she also realized something else.

Strange, how one learns so many things all at once. So much information was filling her head as she learned more about Ronon, as their lives were getting closer and closer to each other's. To add to the stream of knowledge, she finally noticed how much she and Ronon were together. They were growing close to each other, in possibly every way.

A smile filled her face as she pondered these thoughts and tried to remember what to say. "Um – you live closer to the Bay. I will meet you at your quarters."

* * *

If a girl is smart, beautiful, funny, and perfect in every way, could she possibly have any flaws?

If – oh so fortunately! – she spent every free moment with him, laughed at just about everything he said, and looked at him when she thought he didn't know, did that mean she liked him?

Because he'd never even opened up to someone before her, but only knew how to be himself when she was around, and felt dependent on her presence, could he _possibly_ deserve her?

Ronon couldn't stop running over those questions. Those and so many more. So many things. How could she even put them in the same league? Someone like her, someone whose moves dance without knowing, whose body sings without words. The way her nose crinkles when she laughs, and only laughs at things he says. Someone that makes children happy just by talking to them yet could speak with the wisdom of an elder.

It just made no sense.

He never even thought like that before she came along. _She's killing me!_ And Ronon wouldn't trade it for anything.

. . .And they have to go to the zoo.

He _hated_ the zoo.

No, he hadn't ever been there, but the very idea was appalling. Animals were for two things: the wild and eating. That's it. To make them into some kind of show was sick, wrong, unnatural. The only reason he was going was for her. He couldn't wait.

* * *

How could she talk him into liking it? She wanted him to have a nice time, but she didn't want to force him into it.

Did she even have enough power in her words to reach through his anger? That was the real question.

His eyes brightened when she walked into the room, he went out of his way to make her laugh, he tried to impress her with every breath, but never in an overly macho way. If John couldn't reach him on the radio, he tried her, because they were always together.

She couldn't stop thinking about him. She had officially swooned over him.

Moving on from such thoughts. . . How could she possibly make a person like Ronon happy in a place he hated as much as the zoo?

Those thoughts actually kept her up in the night before they left. However, once she had fewer than six hours remaining for sleep, she put such matters away and focused on relaxing into the mattress.

* * *

There they were, Ronon Dex and Teyla Emmagan, in the _zoo_, side-by-side, buying tickets. The impossible had just become possible.

Well – technically they were in the ticket _line_. The past half hour had been spent watching John attempting the math over which was a better deal, tickets or a pass. The two of them had figured it out in five minutes, so they were just getting enjoyment out of watching him struggle.

Rodney muttered something under his breath about MENSA and caked a little more sunscreen on his nose.

Teyla felt herself sway toward Ronon, who was directly to her right. She tended to do that a lot lately, close the distance between them without thinking. They were nearly touching. Despite the warm summer's day, his heat that close to her felt good. Something about the stance made her life seem okay. It made her comfortable and secure, not self-conscious that he was a foot taller than her like one would expect.

She had to remind herself that he wasn't hers yet again. They'd been inseparable for months, but he had never made a move. Perhaps they were just supposed to be friends. It wasn't a happy thought.

His arm brushed hers, a move on his part. Something about the way he was standing was strange, different from his usual stance. His body language made her think that the contact was on purpose. Maybe he needed to feel her like she did him. Maybe he _was_ hers. Now that _was_ a happy thought.

John said something to the two of them, but she was too focused on the quandary to pay attention. As if he understood, Ronon just touched her shoulder gently and led her through the entrance.

The colonel flashed a card and they all went through.

"I can't believe I'm here. Can't believe I'm doing this," Ronon stated yet again. This time his resolve seemed to have weakened, and he said it more as if it was just a habit.

He was slowly losing his hatred for this place. Strange. She wondered why.

* * *

Ronon found himself in a position that he wasn't expecting. From the moment Sheppard announced having bought a pass, Ronon felt his hatred wane away. Perhaps it was his closeness to Teyla – that had always soothed him. Well – brought out the best of him was a better way to put it. Either way, he wasn't quite sure how he felt about his lack of hatred. So far, it was just confusing.

Every time their arms brushed together, warmth shot through his body. She was so soft, so amazing. Why didn't he have the courage to just ask her out already? Right, because she was a goddess. He was just a peasant compared to her. Oh how he wished all that was easier. He was a warrior, a fighter that had spent too much time in the field to know how to handle such a delicate thing. Such a precious item. _Teyla_.

They were now walking closely, occasionally making a comment on an animal here and there. After a half hour, John said he had to make a quick call to the Embassy and Rodney decided to look for the nearest indoor snack bar with air conditioning. The funniest part was that Ronon and Teyla didn't even notice until ten minutes after they separated, when she had to call to find out where they went.

Strange how two people could be surrounded by hundreds yet still be all by themselves.

* * *

They had made it to the giraffes. And, although John had mentioned their beauty, it was entirely different seeing them up close. They were lanky and graceful, strong and sleek. So many opposites combined into living art. Teyla fell in love the moment she saw them.

Ronon suggested they stop for a few minutes at the wall in front of them. She happily accepted. So they were now sitting side by side, up on the wall, observing nature and enjoying each other's company.

Not even twenty seconds had passed before Ronon got her laughing, and that seemed to make him even happier. After a few minutes had passed, they forgot about the giraffes and the zoo altogether and retreated back to the world that was just them.

Teyla remembered updates of Athos that she had yet to tell him, and he had little stories from personal events. It seemed that even though they knew everything about each other, there was always one more thing to say.

Then, when Ronon looked down at his watch (a device Sheppard had forced him to wear when he refused to learn the ins and outs of a cell phone), his face lit up in shock. "Wow."

"What?" Teyla said, knowing it was time related. She pulled out her cell to check exactly how much time _had_ passed. As soon as she saw, she just looked up at him, and their wide eyes met.

"Never thought I'd have this much fun in a zoo," he said to her.

She laughed. "Our past conversation has been totally irrelevant to our being here."

Teyla watched him hop off the wall, a drop even for him. "Maybe that's why." Ronon's eyes flashed so many emotions right then she couldn't begin to name them all. But, with everything they showed, the only one she could see so clearly and understand was love. Pure, unhindered, passionate love for her.

She was taken aback by how powerful his one glance was and how suddenly it came about. But, as if he didn't even know what she'd seen, he held out a hand to help her down. Teyla slowly accepted, almost afraid that too quick of a motion would make him take it all back.

He gently wrapped his hand around hers and helped her down. What happened next was what surprised her the most of all. He started to walk away – with her hand still in his, and a slightly slower pace than normal.

Confused, she followed, keeping up easily. Her face was pointed straight up as she watched his every expression, calculating what was truly going on inside his enigmatic shell.

Finally, he looked down at her, his gaze so steady and reassuring that it made her forget what she was all wound up about. As if to seal the deal, he squeezed her hand and swung it lightly between them.

At first Teyla didn't know what to do. She looked around nervously, but no one was paying any attention to them. They were just two more people in the zoo, even though to her it felt like they were the only people – or, at the least, the most noticeable.

Her entire life had just changed – but she had a feeling it was for the better.

* * *

Teyla found the Earth hotel in which the team had booked rooms a chafing difference from Atlantis. It wasn't as beautiful, technologically advanced, or even as comfortable as Atlantis. Sheppard had said that for Earth standards it was pretty good, and they were getting the four star treatment.

She couldn't see it, personally.

But suddenly the halls didn't look so cold; the carpet so ugly; the paintings so ugly. Everything was glowing softly, as if lit from behind and within with magic. Perhaps some (or most) of that was due to the fact that Ronon was still holding her hand. He hadn't let go of it for most of the day. Even during dinner with Rodney's family, Ronon had been holding her hand under the table. Thank the Ancestors he was ambidextrous, so it wasn't too suspicious that he was eating with his left hand. And the only one paying them any steady attention was darling Madison, Jeannie's daughter. Teyla was extraordinarily besotted with the little girl – and she'd never seen Ronon smile as broadly as he had at Madison. How had she never noticed how good he was with children, how much he loved them?

A naughty, selfish part of her whispered that she hoped to be the woman who gave him children of his own.

They paused next to room 507, hers. Ronon stood completely still for a long moment, just looking at her. Teyla didn't feel uncomfortable under his intense scrutiny, only confused. What was he looking for?

He must have found whatever it was, for suddenly his hand was gone from hers. Teyla immediately felt cold, missing the contact she'd become accustomed to even in such little time. But before she could even feel a twinge of hurt, his hands were on her face, tilting it up to his. His eyes were an even darker green than ever, alive with fire.

And then – her entire _world_ was on fire.

The kiss was at the same time too short and just long enough. She was breathless when he abruptly pulled back, uncertainty on his face. Suddenly everything was brighter, sharper, clearer – _better_. It felt like she was seeing him for the first time; and, perhaps, she was.

A little later when she lay on her back in bed, still fully dressed, she placed her fingers very carefully over her tingling lips and smiled.

Ronon had finally made a move. He really did like her. He really cared. He was finally hers!

_The End_


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